Empowering Solo Women Travellers: 7 Essential Tips to Ensure Safety

How to stay healthy and safe as a female travelling solo

Travelling alone as a woman can be daunting – but it’s also an incredibly rewarding experience. All around the world, there are more and more solo female travellers, whether it be a backpacking adventure, European sojourn, African safari or business trip.

By following some simple tips, solo travel for women can be safe and create lifelong memories.

Skip ahead to read how to:

Top safety tips for solo travel for women

#1. Choose your destination carefully

The reality is some destinations are safer than others for females travelling solo. Before booking your trip: 

  • Check your government’s latest travel advice for your destination 
  • Book accommodation and airport transfers in advance, particularly if travelling to a place where you don’t speak the native language well 
Young Asian woman using laptop by the promenade of Victoria harbour, against illuminated Hong Kong cityscape at dusk

#2. Be alert on transport when travelling alone as a woman

  • Travel in official taxis or a app-based rideshare and sit in the back seat 
  • Keep your luggage safe and close to you while on buses and trains 
  • Sit near other women and avoid empty carriages 
  • Don’t hitchhike  

#3. Avoid being a target when travelling alone as a woman

  • Be aware of common scams in your destination so you know what to look out for  
  • Try to look like a local where possible to avoid sticking out or attracting unwanted attention 
  • Carry a travel bag that slings across your body, rather than a backpack or loose handbag 
  • Don’t tell people you are travelling alone – if asked pretend you are meeting someone 
  • Join group tours and organised activities to meet other like-minded solo travellers 
  • Check in regularly with loved ones at home, and ensure someone has a copy of your itinerary and knows where you will be, share your location from your phone whenever possible 
Businesswoman searching for her room at the executive floor of the luxury hotel

Top health tips for solo travel for women

#4. Get a pre-travel medical check-up

Take the time to visit your General Practitioner or primary care physician at least 6-8 weeks prior to travel if you’re taking a longer trip. This can cover concerns such as: 

  • Travel vaccines  
  • How to manage any pre-existing illnesses while travelling 
  • Ensure you have enough medication for your trip 

#5. Womens health differs around the world

Period products and contraceptives may be difficult to purchase in some countries. It’s a good idea to stock up on supplies and medication before you leave. Remember that sexually transmitted infections such as HIV and hepatitis B are more prevalent in some countries.

Beautiful Asian businesswoman walking in a financial area, she is looking up to the sky and holding a smartphone.

#6. Eat healthy on the road

  • Wherever you are, try to maintain a diet with a good variety of lean protein sources such as red meat, fish, chicken, tofu or legumes. In addition, eat plenty of colourful vegetables and fruit daily. Vitamins and minerals such as iron, zinc, and vitamins A, D, E, B6 and B12 are particularly important to maintain a strong immune system. The best way to get these nutrients is through your diet. 
  • Drink only bottled or purified water 
  • Before you eat food from street vendors, make sure that’s safe in the country you are in and if so that the food is well cooked and made in front of you 
  • Pair healthy eating with exercise on longer trips: use the hotel gym facilities, or take longer walks/runs in safe areas during the daytime 

#7. Avoid too much alcohol or drugs

  • Be careful not to drink alcohol in excess, or take drugs that could impair your judgement or compromise your ability to maintain your senses or general awareness. 
  • It’s important to understand that different countries have differing moral and social standards and making yourself vulnerable may unnecessarily expose you to greater risks of harm. 
  • Avoid alcoholic drinks that are being sold from market stalls or any unlicensed setting. Check labels of alcoholic drinks. 
  • A female travelling solo may be a target for drink spiking. Make sure you buy your own drinks, and watch them being poured at all times. If in doubt, do not drink it. 

Discover how World Travel Protection can help you in a medical emergency

There’s so much to consider when it comes to travel safety. If you’re a frequent traveller or manage a travelling workforce, World Travel Protection’s 24/7 travel and medical assistance helps support its customers when medical, travel and security emergencies arise. Our Travel Risk Management Solutions help provide travellers with all the support they need pre- and during travel via our portal, app, and in-house experts. Fill out the form below to find out more.